2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Garet
A medieval French habitational surname likely derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Garet. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garet surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Garet in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garet, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (8.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garet
The surname GARET is of French origin, derived from the Old French word "garer," which means "to protect" or "to guard." The name likely originated in the medieval period, particularly in the northern regions of France, where it was commonly associated with individuals who worked as guards, watchmen, or protectors.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname GARET can be traced back to the 12th century in various French historical records and manuscripts. For example, the name appeared in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Corbie, a medieval cartulary from the Picardy region, dated around 1150.
One notable bearer of the GARET surname was Jean Garet, a French poet and playwright who lived in the 16th century (c. 1535-1610). He is best known for his plays and satirical works, which provided social commentary on the French nobility and the Catholic Church during his time.
Another historical figure with the GARET surname was Guillaume Garet, a French soldier and explorer who participated in the colonization of New France (present-day Canada) in the early 17th century. He is recorded as having accompanied Samuel de Champlain on his expeditions and contributed to the establishment of settlements along the St. Lawrence River.
In the 18th century, Jacques Garet (1707-1784) was a prominent French architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Paris, including the Hôtel de Longpré and the Church of Saint-Louis-en-l'Île.
Moving to the 19th century, Marie-Joseph-François Garet (1800-1887) was a French jurist and politician who served as a member of the French National Assembly and played a role in the drafting of legal reforms during the Second Republic.
Another notable bearer of the GARET surname was the French philosopher and literary critic, René Garet (1898-1985), who was known for his contributions to the field of phenomenology and his writings on existentialism and literature.
While the GARET surname originated in France, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, with variations in spelling and pronunciation occurring over time. However, the core meaning of the name, derived from the Old French word "garer," has remained consistent, reflecting its historical association with protection and guardianship.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garet
Among Census respondents with the surname Garet, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (8.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Garet bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Garet surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.0% · 81
- Hispanic or Latino15.3% · 17
- Black or African American8.1% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garet
Garet appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+11 bearers (+11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 12,310 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | +11 bearers (+11.0%) | Up 12,310 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Garet surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #160,975 | #148,665 | 7.6% |
| Count | 100 | 111 | 11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 23.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garet bearers went from 100 to 111 (+11.0% change). The surname moved up 12,310 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #148,665.
FAQ
Garet surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garet?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Garet. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Garet?
Garet ranks #148,665 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 111 people with the surname Garet. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Garet.
Has Garet become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garet went from 100 recorded bearers to 111. That is an increase of 11 (+11.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Garet?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garet, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (15.3%) and Black (8.1%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Garet in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.0% (81 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garet appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.0%), Hispanic (15.3%), Black (8.1%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Garet (2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Garet mean?
A medieval French habitational surname likely derived from a place name. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Garet (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Garet?
Want to know how many people have the last name Garet? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.